Page:Cricket (Lyttelton, 1898).djvu/67

Clarke had played for thirty years before he played in this great match. The great Lillywhite, when he was fifty-three, took 12 wickets for 96 runs—which, it is safe to assume, will never be done again. George Parr seems to me, judging by his scores, to have been from 1853 to 1863 the best and certainly the most consistent bat in England; and during that time the Gentlemen never secured one victory, though in 1857 was played a famous match wherein Reginald Hankey played an historical innings of 70. So grand was this innings that it still survives in the memory of those who saw it as one of the great innings of the century. The Players were very strong during the period from 1850 to 1864—Parr, Hayward, Carpenter, Daft, and Caffyn being the most notable bats, with Wisden, Jackson, Willsher, and Wootton prominent as bowlers. But about the year 1865 there was a schism in the professional ranks. Without going into detail, it is sufficient to say that many northern players refused to play, and the